SANTA CLARA, Calif. - The Santa Clara men's tennis team continues its stretch of three matches in four days when it challenges Weber State University and Brigham Young University this Friday and Saturday. The Broncos and Wildcats will hit the courts at 11 a.m. on Friday before making the quick trip to Provo, Utah to take on the Cougars at 5:30 p.m. the following evening.
The Broncos are looking to rally after falling in their most recent match to their conference and local rivals from the University of San Francisco on Wednesday.
Santa Clara last played Weber State two years ago on the Mission Campus, rolling to a 6-1 victory over the Wildcats. Against the Cougars from BYU, the Broncos have taken two-out-of-three matches over the past three seasons. Last season, Santa Clara also cruised to a 6-1 victory against its WCC foe.
The Broncos
Santa Clara arrives in Utah with a 4-5 record overall in the spring. This weekend's matchups will be the first true road tests of the season for the squad as their previous matches on the road were played at neutral settings.
Looking to end a three-match losing skid, the Broncos will look to rely on their veterans and get a boost from the younger members of the squad.
Ashot Khacharyan continues to lead Santa Clara at the No. 1 singles position. The junior is 12-4 on the year but has lost some rhythm as of late, falling in his previous two matches. Competing against Weber State BYU could provide him with a needed spark. Khacharyan trounced his Weber State opponent 6-0, 6-1 two seasons ago. Last year, the righty downed his BYU competitor 6-4, 3-6, 1-0(4).
Fellow teammate Ilya Osintsev has also fared well against these two opponents from the Beehive State. The 6-foot, 4-inch lefty rolled 6-1, 6-4 against Weber State in 2013 and has won two-out-of-three matches against BYU during his regular season career. In his most recent match against the Cougars, Osintsev cruised to a 6-1, 6-1 rout of Francis Sargeant. One more singles win for the senior will imprint his name on the Santa Clara men's tennis top 10 singles wins list.
Coming in with a 7-3 record and 5-2 mark in dual matches, Mikheil Khmiadashvili will look to propel the Broncos at the No. 3 singles position. Against BYU last year, the then-Santa Clara freshman defeated Robin Pfister in straight sets 6-0, 6-2.
Sam Bertram will look to find his winning ways once again when he takes the courts this weekend. The senior fell in his most recent singles match but has a singles win against BYU under his belt dating back to last season. The Aussie came away with a tightly-contested victory, winning 7-5, 7-6(10) over Aidan Carrazedo.
Santa Clara's newcomers Max Heerinckx and Sebastien Mathieu will also look to chip in this weekend. A win for either Bronco freshman with be his first collegiate singles victory.
With one more victory, Santa Clara Head Coach Derek Mills will solidify his 100th career victory as the leader of the Broncos.
Weber State
The Wildcats enter Friday's matchup with a 4-7 record in the spring. Weber State is 3-2 playing on its home court but are currently suffering through a four-match losing skid.
In their most recent action, the Wildcats dropped their Big Sky Conference opener to California State University, Sacramento by a score of 4-3 last weekend.
Individually, the Wildcats are powered by Landon Barlow in singles play. The junior from Salt Lake City, Utah is 7-1 on the year with two wins under his belt at the No. 3 position and five at the No. 4 spot. He is currently riding a six match winning streak.
Stefan Cooper and Jakub Gewert have shared duties at the top singles position. Cooper, a freshman from England, is 2-2 competing at that position and 4-2 playing in either the No. 2 or No. 3 position. Gewert is 2-4 on Court 1 and recently fell in a closely-contested match 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (7-4) to Sacramento State's Sean Kolar last weekend.
Todd Fought, a junior from West Vancouver, B.C., Canada, rounds out the heavyweights for Weber State. Fought is 5-3 in dual match play competing primarily at the No. 2 spot for the Wildcats. However, he is coming off a 6-1, 6-3 defeat against Sacramento State.
In doubles, the Wildcats are primarily led by Cooper and Sanjay Goswami at the No. 1 position. The freshman and junior duo is 5-4 on the season and is fresh off a victory against Sacramento State.
Throughout the year, Weber State has featured five different pairings at the No. 2 spot. All five tandems have combined for a 2-7 record. Searching for their first win as a duo in that second doubles position, Gewert and Fought played together in the Wildcats' last match but fell 7-6 (7-4).
BYU
The Cougars welcome the Broncos to their home courts on Saturday with an even 7-7 record and 6-3 mark at home in their indoor facility. From mid-January to early February, the Cougars compiled a five-match winning streak but have lost their momentum as of late, falling in five consecutive matches.
Prior to Saturday's matchup, BYU will host the University of Utah for an intrastate match on Friday.
Francis Sargeant has led BYU at the No. 1 singles position in the previous five matches. However, the senior is just 1-3 in those contests.
Shane Monroe and Andrey Goryachkov have swapped back-and-forth at the No. 2 and No. 3 singles positions over the past five contests. Monroe, a 6-foot, 2-inch freshman is currently riding a two-match winning streak after downing opponents from the University of Pennsylvania and Boise State University. His junior teammate, Goryachkov, is 2-2 over the past five matches.
The back half of BYU's singles roster is a combined 3-12 since dating back to early February.
At No. 1 doubles, the Cougars have featured a variety of squads in recent time. The most recent pairing consisted of Sargeant and Goryachkov. The senior-junior pairing came away with a 6-3 victory over Boise State.
The other two constantly rotating doubles pairings at the No. 2 and No. 3 spots are a combined 1-8 in the past five matches.
Be sure to check on SantaClaraBroncos.com for more on the Broncos' performance against Weber State and BYU. Stay up to date with everything men's tennis on Facebook, Instagram @santaclaramtennis, and Twitter @SCUmtennis. Go Broncos!
